
科学技术与工程

中国技术经济学会
Analysis of Complex Network Dynamics of Astrocyte Involvement in Epileptic Seizures
Jia-ning LAN , Rong WANG
Science Technology and Engineering ›› 2025, Vol. 25 ›› Issue (34) : 14583 -14591.
Epilepsy is a recurrent transient brain dysfunction syndrome, and its underlying pathophysiological mechanisms remain incompletely understood. To investigate the critical role of calcium ion oscillations and glutamate concentration variations in astrocytes during epileptic seizures, a neuronal connectivity framework was established based on the Watts-Strogatz small-world network model. Subsequently, a neuron-astrocyte coupling network model was developed, with a particular emphasis on cell-to-cell coupling mechanisms in biological systems. Furthermore, an epilepsy brain network coupling dynamics model incorporating astrocytes was constructed. PLV (phase-locking value) was calculated using the Hilbert transform to quantify the phase synchronization of the dominant frequency in the model output. The results demonstrate that as coupling strength increases, the network exhibits a non-monotonic transition from high synchronization to desynchronization and then to global synchronization. Additionally, the combination of different discharge patterns effectively enhances neuronal population synchrony, and a complex coupling relationship is observed between discharge patterns and network structure. Specifically, higher glutamate concentrations are detected in astrocytes within regular networks, whereas this association is significantly weakened in random networks. This study provides deeper insights into the mechanisms underlying epileptic seizures and offers a theoretical foundation for optimizing epilepsy treatment strategies.
epilepsy / neurobrain networks / astrocytes / neurodynamics
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